how to write stump speech

6 Key Components of a Winning Stump Speech

As a candidate for elected office you’re going to be giving plenty of speeches, so you’ll need to have your stump speech down pat.

Strong public speaking conveys confidence and leadership to voters.  

It assures donors and supporters that you’re the right person for office.

Unfortunately, too many candidates are not good public speakers.

They don’t have a key message or theme.

Their words wander all over the place.

They don’t make sense and wind up confusing their audience.

I witnessed this the one night by a candidate who is running his own campaign.

He had good ideas. He had a solid resume.

His speech however did not effectively convey that he’s up for the job.

With a little fine-tuning he would be much better.

A good stump speech makes a huge difference in a candidate’s race, their fundraising, and in gathering endorsements.

That’s why I always work with my candidates on their stump speeches.

I’ve even turned the things I teach candidates into a premium course The Secrets of a Winning Stump Speech .

Most of my clients have never ran for office before.

They’re not used to public speaking, even in front of small groups.

Over the course of my career, I’ve noticed that there are six key components that make for a good stump speech.

If you follow these, you’ll be in good shape as a candidate and might even surprise yourself as a public speaker.

1.  Who You Are and What You’re Running For

Never assume that the voters know who you are.

They likely don’t.

Your mission as a candidate for office is to build your name recognition and support for your candidacy.

Even if you’ve been introduced by someone, always begin your stump speech by telling your audience who you are and the office your running for.

If you’re married, say so and tell them how long you’ve been married.

If you have children, list your kids and how old they are, and what kind of things they’re into.

Should your spouse, children, parents, or other family members be present, be sure to point them out by name and thank them for their support for your campaign — especially if it’s your spouse.

It’s a cardinal sin in the political world to not introduce or thank your spouse.

2.  Where You Come From

Voters like to elect real people from real places with real lives.

After you introduce yourself and the office you’re running for, tell them where you grew up, a little about your family life, and how that impacted your life.

If you’re running in a community where you’ve lived all of your life, or most of it, make sure that’s highlighted in your stump speech.

Mention the schools you went to, where you played sports, your first job in town, your favorite place to eat, or that your parents still live there.

This creates an instant connection with the voters and will make it easier for them to become supporters.

3.  What You’ve Dones

Experience matters to voters.

They want to know that you’ve accomplished something in your life.

In your stump speech, tell them about where you graduated from college (if you did), your military service (if you served), the jobs you’ve had (if you’ve never had a job or a business  — why are you even running?)

Voters want to know these things for two reasons:

1) it shows you can set goals and accomplish them

2) it demonstrates you’re not afraid of hard work

This is especially true in today’s political environment when the perception of elected officials is that they’re only in office to cash for themselves and their family members, rather than work hard and accomplish something for their constituents.

Have you noticed that critics of both Joe Biden and Donald Trump each use this line of attack?

Talk about your professional experience — the things you’ve done and learned that have prepared you for office.

If you volunteer or are active in community organizations, put this in your stump speech.

But please be careful not to come off as bragging.

That will turn off voters rather than endear them to you.

Yes, Donald Trump violates this admonition often, and it reflects negatively his approval ratings and poll numbers.

If Trump who can get away with so much that other candidates cannot is still damaged by this, don’t think you’ll fare any better.

4.  What You Want to Accomplish

Voters like candidates who have a plan.

They want to know why you’re running for office and what you intend to do once you’re elected.

The best way to clarify this is by understanding what your campaign is about in one sentence, as detailed in this article.

When giving your stump speech, incorporate your One Sentence into your remarks and build upon it.

It’s best to have three specific things you want to accomplish.

Your goals should align with three problems that need to be fixed.

Hopefully you’ve done some polling or other type of opinion research so you’ll know what issues and problems are foremost on your voters’ minds.

State each problem, describe how you’d like things to be better, and outline the steps you believe that can be taken to get there.

While you need to show that your plan is realistic, be careful not to get into too many specifics with your solutions to these problems.

While you need to know the specifics for when you are elected, and when people ask you for details, giving specifics and details in your stump speech will bore your audience.

Bored voters don’t convert into supporters.

Excited voters do, plus they tell their friends to vote for you.

5.  It’s Not About I, It’s About We

One of the biggest pitfalls candidates for elected office can face is making it all about themselves.

While you may be the one running, elections are not about candidates.

They are about voters.

Elections are where the voters get to have their say on people and policy.

If you make it about you, you’ll fall into the “I, me, mine” trap, become labeled as a “politician” and turn off the voters you need.

When giving your stump speech always change the word “I” to the word “we” when it’s possible.

Clearly, when talking about where you grew up, went to school, work, and your family, you’re going to use “I.”

But when you are talking about what you want to do in office, things that you’ve been a part of in your community, or accomplishments you were involved in as part of a larger organization, use the word “we.”

Speaking to your audience with the word “we” creates a bond and buy-in with your ideas.  That’s the effect that you’re after with your stump speech.

In 2016, Hillary Clinton severely violated this rule.

She had supporters say, “I’m with her.”

It didn’t work because she was asking the voters to focus on her as the candidate — rather than focusing on the voters and the shared mission they were on together.

Donald Trump spun that around masterfully and told his supporters “I’m with you.”

6. Close Strong

Closing your stump speech the right way is important.

After you’ve listed what you want to do in office, tell the audience that you can’t do this without their help.

Weaving “we” throughout your stump speech ties this in nicely for your finish.

If you’re talking to voters, ask them for their votes.

If you’re talking to donors, ask them for their contributions.

If you’re talking to leaders of an organization that endorses, ask them for their support.

There’s no reason for anyone to give you what you want unless you specifically ask for it.

As one professor I had always said, “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.”

Make the ask then it’s time for you to go.

End by thanking your audience for their time.

Always do this. Tell them you appreciate taking the time to listen to you.

Grateful candidates tend to be winning candidates.

Candidate Take-Aways

If you follow these six rules you’ll be able to craft an effective stump speech.

Go figure yours out and write it out word for word.

After you write it out, go and learn it.

Learn it and practice your stump speech, but don’t memorize it.

You don’t want to come off like a robot.

If it helps, write an outline of our speech and refer to that when you’re speaking.

The first speech you give will likely be difficult and you may hate doing it.

That’s fine.

Keep giving your stump speech.

You’ll get better at it each time you speak.

Before you know it you won’t need an outline to refer to, you won’t be nervous, and people will be coming up to you when you’re finished telling you what a great speaker you are.

Now if you’d like to go deeper and learn exactly how to write, rehearse, and deliver a solid stump speech, t ap this link for instant access to the premium course Secrets of a Winning Stump Speech.

Copyright 2015 - 2023, Brian Floyd Enterprises, Inc. Design & Developed by Themagnifico

Stump Speeches On The Political Campaign Trail

A political campaign stump speech is given by a candidate for political office to introduce themself to the audience and present their platform. The speech is short and to the point, with plenty of personal stories, humor, and emotional appeal to the audience. It is often repeated throughout the campaign to smaller audiences.

In the world of politics, a good stump speech stands as an integral tool for fundraising or candidates vying for public office or as part of a presidential campaign. This enduring tradition, spanning decades and continents, serves as a platform for politicians to captivate and sway their audiences.

From addressing key issues to showcasing their vision for the future, the stump speech has evolved into a defining aspect of political campaigns, empowering candidates to rally support and leave lasting impressions on the electorate.

Table of Contents

What Is The Difference Between A Campaign Speech And A Stump Speech?

The terms “campaign speech” and “stump speech” are often interchangeable, but a subtle difference exists between the two. A stump speech is the equivalent of an elevator speech intended to make an introduction and summarize the essence of what a candidate has to offer.

It is a standard speech politicians give, while campaign speeches go into more detail and may vary between audiences.

Stump Speeches

The term “ stump speech ” originates from the practice of candidates standing on a literal tree stump or platform while delivering their speech in outdoor settings. Stump speeches tend to be more focused and streamlined, highlighting key messages and core talking points the candidate wants to convey consistently to different audiences.

Abraham Lincoln was known for effectively using stump speeches during his political career. He would often deliver these speeches while standing on a literal stump or platform, addressing crowds of voters directly. Lincoln’s stump speeches were concise, straightforward, and focused on connecting with the common people.

Ronald Reagan’s political addresses were optimistic and uplifting. He was a clear and persuasive speaker who intertwined strong conservative ideology with effective use of storytelling and skillful injections of humor.

Campaign Speeches

A campaign speech refers to a broader category of speeches a political candidate delivers during an election campaign. These speeches can take various forms and are typically tailored to specific audiences or events. Campaign speeches are often designed to appeal to a diverse range of voters the candidate encounters at rallies, town hall meetings, debates, or other campaign events.

What Is The Purpose Of A Political Campaign Speech?

The purpose of any  political campaign speech  is to establish a personal connection with voters by sharing relatable stories and experiences while presenting the candidate’s policy positions and vision for the future persuasively. It is a most effective way of inspiring trust, garnering support, and persuading voters to choose the candidate as the most qualified and capable leader for the office they seek.

A political campaign speech also serves as a platform for candidates to address critical issues and challenges facing the community, showcasing their understanding of these problems and their proposed solutions.

Through their speech-making abilities, candidates aim to rally their base, sway undecided voters, and demonstrate their leadership qualities and ability to effectively govern, ultimately seeking to secure the necessary support for a successful campaign.

What Should The Content Of A Campaign Speech Be?

The content of a campaign speech should include a combination of personal anecdotes and stories that resonate with voters, highlighting shared experiences and values, as well as the candidate’s policy positions and proposals to address major issues and challenges facing the community.

Furthermore, a campaign speech should emphasize the candidate’s vision for the future, inspiring hope and optimism while instilling trust and confidence in their leadership abilities.  Effective rhetorical techniques , such as persuasive language and powerful storytelling, can captivate the audience, leave a lasting impression, and generate enthusiasm and support for the candidate’s campaign.

Speechwriters play a crucial role in crafting solid stump speeches and political speeches for candidates on the campaign trail. They work closely with the candidate and their campaign team to develop a compelling message that resonates with the audience and aligns with the candidate’s goals and values.

What Type Of Speech Is A Campaign Speech?

A campaign speech is a persuasive address delivered by a political candidate during an election, aiming to engage and mobilize the audience in support of their campaign. It combines informative elements, presenting policy positions and proposals while employing persuasive techniques to sway voters.

These speeches serve as platforms for candidates to showcase their leadership qualities, establish personal connections with voters, and demonstrate their credibility. Candidates inspire trust and gain support from the audience by addressing key issues and presenting a compelling vision for the future.

What Should You Say In A Campaign Speech?

In a campaign speech, addressing critical community issues and presenting the candidate’s proposed solutions effectively is crucial. The speech should also highlight the candidate’s vision for the future, inspiring hope and establishing a personal connection with the audience through relatable stories and experiences.

Additionally, emphasizing the candidate’s qualifications, accomplishments, and relevant experiences is essential to showcase their suitability for the office they seek. It is important to appeal to the values and aspirations of the voters and conclude the speech with a strong call to action, urging the audience to support the campaign through voting, volunteering, or contributing.

For his candidacy, Republican Donald Trump used direct and confrontational language and populist messaging. His simple and repetitive slogans, such as “Make America Great Again” and “America First.” helped to convey his key messages and rally support among his base.

How Do You Start Off A Campaign Speech?

To start off a campaign speech, you can begin by acknowledging the audience and expressing gratitude for their presence, showing your appreciation for their support, much like Democratic Presidential Candidate  Barack Obama did in his campaign speeches .

Provide a compelling and relatable anecdote or story that captures the essence of your message, connecting it to the aspirations and concerns of the people you aim to represent.

Following that, transition into a clear and concise statement of your campaign’s core values and priorities. Use this opportunity to outline the key issues you plan to address and explain how your policies and proposals align with your values and goals.

How Long Should A Campaign Speech Be?

A campaign speech’s ideal length varies depending on the context and audience but generally ranges from 10 to 30 minutes. It should be concise and immediately capture the listeners’ attention, holding their interest throughout.

To effectively engage the audience and convey your message, focus on delivering a speech that is long enough to cover your key points but short enough to maintain the audience’s attention and leave a lasting impression.

What Is The Difference Between A Political Campaign Speech And A Speech At A Press Conference?

A political campaign speech is a public address delivered by a candidate during an election campaign to engage and mobilize voters. It aims to convey the candidate’s message, policy positions, and vision for the future in a persuasive manner, typically lasting from 10 to 30 minutes.

On the other hand, a speech at a press conference is an o pportunity for politicians to address the media directly, often in response to specific events or issues. These speeches tend to be more focused and concise, lasting a few minutes or less, as they are designed to provide information, answer questions from journalists, and shape the narrative around a particular topic or incident.

What Should You Do If You Are Giving A Campaign Speech And The Audience Isn’t Responding Well?

If you are giving a campaign speech and the audience isn’t responding well, you can take several steps to remedy the situation:

• Maintain your composure and project confidence even if the audience reaction is not what you expected.
• Assess the audience’s mood and engagement level. If they seem disinterested or unresponsive, consider adjusting your delivery style.
• Find ways to establish a personal connection with the audience. Share relatable stories, use humor, or ask thought-provoking questions to draw them into the speech.
• If you sense specific concerns or objections from the audience, address them directly. Acknowledge their perspectives, provide clarifications, and present your viewpoint in a respectful and persuasive manner.
• Adjust your content . If the audience is not responding well, evaluate your content and messaging. Ensure that you are addressing topics that are relevant and meaningful to them.

What Do You Do If You Lose Your Voice During A Campaign Speech?

If you lose your voice during a campaign speech, it can be a challenging situation, but there are steps you can take to handle it:

• Losing your voice can be frustrating, but it’s crucial to remain calm and composed. Take a brief moment to gather yourself and maintain a confident demeanor.
• Politely inform the audience that you are experiencing voice difficulties. Use gestures or non-verbal cues to indicate the situation, such as holding up a hand or pointing to your throat.
• Take a momentary pause to allow your voice to rest and recover. Take slow, deep breaths to relax your vocal cords.
• If possible, have a backup plan in place . Consider having a colleague or team member step in to continue delivering the speech on your behalf.
• If your voice is strained but still audible, focus on engaging the audience through non-verbal means. Exaggerate your facial expressions, gestures, and body language slightly to convey your message.

Adam Howarth

Adam covers the topic of Public Speaking for Digital Authority. From his first experience of oratory with his school debating society to his more recent experiences of promoting the local business scene in Wrexham, Wales, he has always been involved in public speaking.

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7:00 AM EST | NOV 23, 2015

The Perfect Republican Stump Speech

We asked former republican speechwriter barton swaim to write a ​totally pandering stump speech for an imaginary gop presidential candidate — one who ​espouses only positions that a majority of republicans agree with (we also did the same with democrats ). ​here’s the speech he wrote, including notes to explain his phrasing, behind-the-scenes pro tips on appealing to republican voters and the data he used to decide which positions to take..

By Barton Swaim

Research by Harry Enten and Sam Henick , graphics by Ella Koeze , production by Gus Wezerek

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Who’s ready to stand up for America? [applause] Who’s ready to take this country back? [applause] Who’s ready to send a message to the elites in Washington? [slightly waning applause]

You know, the Democrats want to make this election complicated. They want to convince you that taking more money out of the private sector and giving it to bureaucrats in Washington will somehow improve the economy.

How would that work? They’ll tell you, “It’s complicated; just trust us.”

They want to convince you that giving Iran’s extremist thugs whatever they want — and trusting that they won’t build a nuclear weapon — will somehow make the Middle East more stable.

How, exactly? “Well, it’s complicated. Just trust us. Just trust the Obama administration. Just trust the Democratic leadership in Congress, like Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi.”

They’re going to try to convince you that putting government in charge of your health insurance is somehow going to improve our health care system. You might wonder how putting government in charge of anything makes it more efficient or improves its quality.

It hasn’t exactly worked that way with the Postal Service, but hey — it’s complicated. You’ll just have to trust them.

[pause; wait for a few people to boo]

It’s actually not complicated, and Americans aren’t going to trust them anymore.

In fact, this election boils down to a few very simple principles. To understand these principles, you don’t need an advanced degree in the latest trendy subject from an Ivy League school. You don’t need to get your opinions from the New York Times. You don’t need to be some policy wonk in Washington, and you don’t need to be a member of the intelligentsia.

You really just need two things to understand what this election is about: You need your God-given intelligence, and you need a deep and abiding love for this country.

The principles are these.

On the economy, the best thing the government can do is get out of the way.

We’ve seen it time and again in American history: When we remove the burdens of over-regulation and allow Americans to spend and invest more of their own money, we unleash their potential to create prosperity and opportunity for everybody — especially those struggling to make ends meet.

Our Democratic friends seem to think we can improve our economy by passing a few laws. So they want to raise the minimum wage. That’s great. I worked in a job making minimum wage once, and if you had asked me if I thought the minimum wage should be raised, I would have probably said “sure.” (I was 15, OK? Cut me some slack.) But Democrats know as well as you do that mandating an increase in the minimum wage — while it may sound great — stunts the private sector’s ability to get new people into the workforce. So people already in the workforce get raises, and people looking for a job will find it that much harder because employers can’t afford new workers.

We know government has a duty to look out for the poor. But never at the expense of making the poor dependent on public aid. We need to encourage states to reform welfare eligibility rules to ensure we’re not encouraging dependency.

Now President Obama and his allies in Congress want to raise the threshold for overtime pay. So they actually think — they actually think — that politicians and bureaucrats in Washington have a better idea of who ought to get paid what salaries than the people running businesses right here in [whatever town we’re in].

On trade, we must embrace the reality that we’re in a global economy while never failing to safeguard the American economy.

The Democratic Party is still held hostage by the labor unions — coercive and outdated pressure groups that still think American workers can’t compete with any other country in the world.

We can’t turn a blind eye to currency manipulation and human-rights abuses, but as Republicans we know that the American economy is the best in the world and that we can compete with anybody, anywhere, any time.

On government spending, we need to speak the simple truth: Spending more money will not somehow reduce the federal deficit or magically reduce the budget.

It’s sad that we even have to point this out. President Obama and his Democratic allies on Capitol Hill told us in 2009 that if we spent several hundred billion dollars on an “economic stimulus,” we’d improve the economy and somehow reduce the deficit.

It didn’t happen.

We were told that passing Obamacare, with its massive expansion of Medicaid, would somehow help to balance the budget.

Obviously, that didn’t happen. Because you don’t spend more to balance the budget. You spend less.

We’ve got to take a more realistic approach to spending in this country. That starts with taking a hard look at welfare programs that encourage dependency and simply don’t work. We need to act quickly on deficit reduction — we can’t keep kicking the can down the road on tough budget questions.

Our budget deficit is killing us — we’re spending exponentially more than we have, and sooner or later it’s going to catch up with us. And so to bring the deficit down, we’re going to have to make some decisions that — let’s face it — are gonna make a lot of people mad. We’re going to have to cut programs, and any time you do that, special interests will fight like demons to keep you from doing it. But if we’re going to save this country from a fiscal apocalypse, that’s what we’re going to have to do, and I need you to stay engaged when the fight comes.

Any time there’s a budget crisis, the Democrats’ first move is to raise taxes. But the first move has always got to be cutting government spending.

There’s a time and a place to talk about revenue, but for the Democrats, raising taxes is the answer to every question, the solution to every problem. As president, I’ll make sure Washington understands this: The bloated budget of the federal government gets cut before a single American pays more in taxes.

On foreign policy, the right approach is actually a very simple one. We need to strengthen our allies and distrust our enemies — not the reverse.

This administration gets it the wrong way around. We strengthen our enemies by, for example, cutting arms deals with them, knowing full well those enemies will use the provisions of the deal to seek and obtain the nuclear weapons we want to keep out of their hands.

Let me be absolutely clear: The Iran nuclear deal is a joke. The Iranians intended to violate the letter and spirit of that agreement the moment they signed it.

And while we’re strengthening our avowed enemies in Iran, we’re doing next to nothing to help our allies in Israel, Ukraine and elsewhere. President Obama has openly feuded with the prime minister of Israel, doing everything but actually campaigning against him. Meanwhile the administration lets Vladimir Putin virtually annex half of Ukraine without offering anything more than empty rhetoric as an objection: We’re not supplying our Ukrainian allies with weaponry, we’re not strengthening our naval presence in the Black Sea, we’re doing almost nothing to further NATO’s plans for a missile defense system that would check Russian aggression in Eastern Europe.

I will change that.

When President Obama came into office, he said he wanted to bring a new approach to the world, and many of us were ready to see what he could accomplish. But he has systematically encouraged our enemies and insulted our allies. We don’t need to take America back to some Cold War mentality, but we do need to speak and act with moral clarity about the naked aggression of Russia; about terrorist governments in Syria, the Palestinian territories and North Korea; and about the expansionist ambitions and ongoing human-rights abuses of China.

And this administration’s confused and irresolute foreign policy has resulted in total incompetence on the question of Syrian refugees. Clearly the United States can’t sit by and do nothing while families flee the savage violence of ISIS and the Assad regime. Many of our ancestors fled violence when they came to these shores — think of persecuted religious minorities in the 1600s or Jews seeking refuge from Western Europe in the 1920s and ’30s — so we’re not going to turn a blind eye to these people.

At the same time, we can’t — as the administration is proposing to do — simply shuffle thousands of men with possible terrorist connections into the United States and hope they don’t cause any trouble once they’re here. The attacks in Paris have reminded us that terrorism is alive and well in the West, and now is not the time to let down our guard. So yes, we’ve got to welcome people fleeing persecution, but we absolutely cannot let men with terrorist ambitions take advantage of our hospitality.

We’ve got to address this problem at its source — Syria. Does that mean sending troops into Syria? I don’t think we know the answer to that yet, but I’ll tell you what it doesn’t mean: It doesn’t mean we should declare an intention to stay out of Syria. You don’t proclaim your intentions to your enemies in the way this administration has done. Never. [with annoyed expression] Why would we give Assad and ISIS that kind of assurance?

On immigration, again the principle is very simple: Let’s keep those who work hard and contribute to our economy, and let’s keep the lawbreakers out.

This administration has not led on immigration. It has followed, and as a result it has failed badly. We were told — for years we were told — the president would produce a plan to deal with the catastrophe that is our immigration system. All we got was an executive order saying illegals didn’t have to obey the law.

No plan. No proposed legislation. No negotiation with Congress. Just an executive order.

That’s not “immigration reform,” and it’s not leadership. [shouting] That’s sheer lawless autocracy.

President Obama, we still have a Congress in this country, and we fought a war to get rid of a king. Illegal executive orders are no substitute for leadership.

On health care, we need to put the individual in charge, not bureaucrats. It’s as simple as that.

The misnamed Affordable Care Act did precisely the opposite by empowering the federal government to commandeer the nation’s health insurance market. When I’m president, item No. 1 is going to be reverse the entire bureaucratic nightmare we call Obamacare.

We can’t just say “get rid of Obamacare,” though. We’ve got to replace it with commonsense free-market reforms — reforms like allowing insurance companies to compete across state lines and getting rid of mandated insurance benefits that drive up costs for everyone.

On abortion, we need to regain the moral clarity we’ve lost.

We need to remember what the pro-life movement understood nearly a half-century ago, when abortion was first legalized across the nation by judicial fiat. And that is this: that human life is sacred, that we as a nation have a right to protect human life with our laws, and that the unborn aren’t to be treated as morally insignificant collections of cell tissue and sold like meat at a supermarket.

When I’m president, I will make it my mission to see that Planned Parenthood is not only defunded but investigated.

That brings us to the courts. We need people on the bench who understand that they’re not cultural warriors — they’re judges.

Unfortunately the Court again overstepped its bounds by unilaterally redefining marriage. Whatever your view on same-sex marriage, I think we can all agree that five justices in Washington, D.C., have neither the wisdom nor the right to redefine an institution.

I reject that understanding of the court’s role. As president, I can promise you that I’ll appoint federal judges and Supreme Court justices who understand their role: to rightly interpret the laws and the Constitution, not to invent new moral imperatives and impose them on an entire society.

If you feel the same way on these issues, and I know the vast majority of Americans do, I need you to get out there and do your part. I need you to stay engaged, [dramatic hand gesture, as if pointing to a plane in the distance] all the way to November.

Because remember: This election isn’t about me, or Hillary Clinton, or anyone else. It’s about where we’re headed as a nation, and I believe we’re headed up toward economic freedom, self-governance, strength abroad and prosperity at home.

Thank you, and may God bless America.

Illustration by Joel Plosz.

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America 101: What is a Stump Speech?

Updated: August 21, 2018 | Original: September 26, 2016

Jon Favreau, a former speechwriter for President Obama, sheds light on the formula for crafting a perfect stump speech.

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Your Stump Speech

One of the hardest things to do as a candidate is answer “Why are you running for office.” But it is a question you must answer every day whether in a formal speech setting or an informal setting. Learn how to write your stump speech, build your brand and convey your values to voters. Campaigns that strategically think about to whom the candidate is speaking, and when, get the most value out of political speeches. So how should candidates plan their speeches throughout a campaign? We’ll help guide you through a speaking strategy that works!

Interested in more? Use our  Resource Library  to access more skills.

Don’t forget these stump speech resource companions!

We want to make sure you have all the tools you need to be positioned for success. That’s why we have quite a few different resources to go along with this guided webinar. These are all PDFs, so make sure you have some sort of PDF reader. We like Adobe PDF

• First up is the sample stump speech download by Colorado State Representative Faith Winter (and VRL Alum!). But you get more than just a document with words. This sample stump speech is jam-packed full of actionable advice call-outs on what makes it a winner. Get your copy of Representative Winter’s winning stump speech with notes here . Trouble downloading? Try right-clicking on the link and “save link as.”
• Before you do go any further, you HAVE to download our stump speech worksheet . If writing things down is your thing then you can print this out. A digital gal? This is an editable PDF, so you can just type directly in worksheet. This three page document walks you through your entire speech from start to finish, areas to improve, what worked, what didn’t, and a section for some personal notes of your own.
• And finally, because getting you everything you need to succeed is the whole point of our core curriculum, you can download the ENTIRE DECK for free. Just click here or the image below to download the PDF.

Other references:

We talk about some great reference to check out on your journey to crafting the perfect stump speech and positioning yourself as the best leader out there. Here’s a few of our favorites for this topic:

• How great leaders inspire action [Ted Talk]
• Your body language shapes who you are [Ted Talk]. You might know her from Power Posing!
• Toastmasters is a great site with a TON of resources and tools specifically to help you become a confident public speaker and strong leader.

Writing a Stump Speech: Your Central Speech Idea

Happy Monday to you and welcome back to part three of the speech series. This one focuses on writing a stump speech which is basically a political oratory that formally addresses an audience. So, got something to say? Say it loud with these tips!

The main purposes of a stump speech are:

• To communicate political ideas and proposals to solve problems.
• A call to action to your audience’s behaviour.
• A good one can be used over and over again to guarantee not just applause, but to make a connection with the audience.

With a stump speech you ask the usual: 

• Who is the audience?
• What are the three key messages?

It is very important to know what your central idea of the speech is. The stump speech has a major goal to unify the audience and to persuade it to act on three specific issues. And remember: no more than three (there’s power in three’s). So, what is your message, your mission statement and your vision? Write it down in a maximum of 15 to 20 words. Remember, writing a stump speech is creating a message about an issue or issues the audience must remember. For example:

• Describe the situation or issues you want to change, improve or perhaps strengthen; the big picture.
• Tell where the existing situation leads to.
• Explain why and how.
• Describe what your opponents want, and why that’s wrong.
• Tell what you want to do about it, how you want to achieve your goal. What are your solutions, plans and proposals?
• List the people who support you and believe in you.
• Offer a step-by-step how to plan. What would you change or do first, and then next? This is a perfect opportunity to formulate a three or five point plan to reach goals.
• Urge the public to support this issue and repeat the mission-statement.

Provide educational proofs to construct your claim. That is the basis of every persuasive and informative special occasion speech. Offer them:

• Facts, figures, statistics and expert testimonies. Research is crucial.
• Concrete examples.
• Personal stories and anecdotes.
• Vivid descriptions.
• A catchy analysis of the issue’s political aspects and dimensions.

Example of a great Stump Speech (shortened for length):

I am going to talk of controversial things. I make no apology for this.

It’s time we asked ourselves if we still know the freedoms intended for us by the Founding Fathers. James Madison said, “We base all our experiments on the capacity of mankind for self government.”

This idea — that government was beholden to the people, that it had no other source of power — is still the newest, most unique idea in all the long history of man’s relation to man. This is the issue of this election: Whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American Revolution and confess that a little intellectual elite in a far-distant capital can plan our lives for us better than we can plan them ourselves.

You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man’s age-old dream–the maximum of individual freedom consistent with order — or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. Regardless of their sincerity, their humanitarian motives, those who would sacrifice freedom for security have embarked on this downward path. Plutarch warned, “The real destroyer of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits.”

The Founding Fathers knew a government can’t control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing.

You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children’s children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done.

And finally…

The key messages may be the same but they are tailored to each audience. For example a stump speech to a major assembly of diplomats on anti-corruption may have the same key messages as one to a minority community, or to an audience of activists, or to the media. It’s all about finding your voice and delivering it in a way that will translate to the people you want to target.

Have any methods on how you write a speech? Let me know at [email protected]. Good luck!

Five Steps You can Take to Improve Your Public Speaking

Download my FREE guide to help you now.

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Trump ramps up dark rhetoric in Ohio stump speech for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures to the crowd at a campaign rally Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Cleveland businessman and Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno gestures to the crowd at a campaign rally ahead of remarks from Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, right, shakes hands with Bernie Moreno at a campaign rally Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a Buckeye Values PAC rally on Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Meg Kinnard)

Supporters react as Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign rally Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, center, speaks with, from left to right, Rep. Jim Jordan, Bernie Moreno, Sen. J.D. Vance and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem at a campaign rally Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, right, points toward Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally, Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump, left, embraces South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem at a campaign rally, Saturday, March 16, 2024, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

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VANDALIA, Ohio (AP) — Former President Donald Trump claimed that he — not President Joe Biden — will protect Social Security and warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November as he campaigned for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Ohio.

Trump, speaking on a wind-whipped airfield outside of Dayton Saturday, praised his chosen candidate in the race as an “America first champion” and “political outsider who has spent his entire life building up Ohio communities.”

“He’s going to be a warrior in Washington,” Trump said, days after securing enough delegates to clinch the 2024 Republican nomination.

Moreno faces Secretary of State Frank LaRose and state Sen. Matt Dolan in Tuesday’s GOP primary. LaRose and Moreno have aligned themselves with the pro-Trump faction of the party, while Dolan is backed by more establishment Republicans, including Gov. Mike DeWine and former Sen. Rob Portman .

Saturday’s rally was hosted by Buckeye Values PAC, a group backing Moreno’s candidacy. But Trump used the stage to deliver a profanity-filled version of his usual rally speech that again painted an apocalyptic picture of the country if Biden wins a second term.

“If I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country,” he warned, while talking about the impact of offshoring on the country’s auto industry and his plans to increase tariffs on foreign-made cars.

Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer accused Trump of doubling “down on his threats of political violence.”

“He wants another January 6, but the American people are going to give him another electoral defeat this November because they continue to reject his extremism, his affection for violence, and his thirst for revenge,” Singer charged in a statement.

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said that Trump had clearly been talking about the impact of a second Biden term on the auto industry and broader economy.

“Crooked Joe Biden and his campaign are engaging in deceptively, out-of-context editing,” he said.

Trump repeatedly noted his difficulty reading from his teleprompters, which could be seen visibly whipping in 35-mile-per-hour wind gusts.

A one-time Trump critic, Moreno, a wealthy Cleveland businessman, supported Marco Rubio for president in the 2016 Republican primary, and once tweeted that listening to Trump was “like watching a car accident that makes you sick, but you can stop looking.” In 2021, NBC News reported on an email exchange around the time of Trump’s first presidential run in which Moreno referred to Trump as a “lunatic” and a “maniac.”

On Saturday, however, Moreno praised Trump as a “great American” and railed against those in his party who have been critical of the former president, who this week became his party’s presumptive nominee for a third straight election.

“I am so sick and tired of Republicans that say, ‘I support President Trump’s policies but I don’t like the man,’” he said as he joined Trump on stage.

Trump also dismissed recent allegations against Moreno, comparing them to attacks he has faced through the years, including his criminal indictments. Trump has been charged in four separate cases that span his handling of classified documents to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

“He’s getting some very tough Democrat fake treatment right now,” Trump said. “And we’re not going to stand for it because I know this man. We all know this man. He’s a hero, he’s a winner. And we’re not going to let these people — these people are sick.”

The Associated Press reported on Thursday that in 2008, someone with access to Moreno’s work email account created a profile on an adult website seeking “Men for 1-on-1 sex.” The AP could not definitively confirm that it was created by Moreno himself. Moreno’s lawyer said a former intern created the account and provided a statement from the intern, Dan Ricci, who said he created the account as “part of a juvenile prank.”

Questions about the profile have circulated in GOP circles for the past month, sparking frustration among senior Republican operatives about Moreno’s potential vulnerability in a general election, according to seven people who are directly familiar with conversations about how to address the matter. They requested anonymity to avoid running afoul of Trump and his allies.

Trump, in his remarks, also accused Biden of posing a threat to Social Security as he continued trying to clean up comments from an interview earlier this week in which he appeared to voice openness to cuts.

“You will not be able to have Social Security with this guy in office because he’s destroying the economics of our country. And that includes Medicare, by the way, and American seniors are going to be in big trouble,” he warned, even though Biden has pledged to protect and strengthen Social Security as it faces a projected budget shortfall.

“I made a promise that I will always keep Social Security, Medicare. We always will keep it. We never will cut it,” he said.

In a Monday interview with CNBC, Trump had answered a question about Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid by saying that, “there is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting and in terms of also the theft and the bad management of entitlements, tremendous bad management of entitlements. There’s tremendous amounts of things and numbers of things you can do.”

Trump also continued to criticize Biden over his handling of the border as he cast migrants as less than human. “In some cases, they’re not people, in my opinion,” he said. Trump laced into Dolan, calling him a “weak RINO” — a Republican in name only — and accused him of “trying to become the next Mitt Romney.” He also criticized the Dolan family, which owns Cleveland’s baseball team, for changing its name from the Cleveland Indians to the Cleveland Guardians.

Trump was joined at the rally by Ohio Sen. JD Vance and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who have both stumped with Moreno and are considered potential vice-presidential candidates.

Trump’s decision to back Moreno marked a major blow to LaRose, who had taken a number of steps to win his favor. Just days after entering the Senate race, LaRose endorsed Trump for president — reversing an earlier stance that the state’s elections chief should remain politically neutral. The next month, he fired a long-time trusted aide after old tweets surfaced in which the staffer criticized Trump.

The winner of Tuesday’s primary will face third-term Sen. Sherrod Brown, viewed as among the nation’s most vulnerable Democrats, in November.

Brown, first elected in 2006 and uncontested in his primary this year, has managed to hold onto his seat even as the state has shifted to the right. In his most recent reelection in 2018, he defeated then-Rep. Jim Renacci by almost 7 percentage points. Two years later, Ohio voted for then-President Trump by 8 points.

Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Brian Slodysko contributed to this report.

Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP

Trump says some undocumented immigrants are ‘not people’

The former president also warned of “a bloodbath” if he does not defeat joe biden in november.

VANDALIA, Ohio — Former president Donald Trump ratcheted up his dehumanizing rhetoric against immigrants Saturday by saying that some who are accused of crimes are “not people.”

“I don’t know if you call them people,” he said at a rally near Dayton, Ohio. “In some cases they’re not people, in my opinion. But I’m not allowed to say that because the radical left says that’s a terrible thing to say.”

Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, was in Ohio to stump for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno, who is in a tight three-way race for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. Moreno, a businessman, is facing Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose and state Sen. Matt Dolan in Tuesday’s primary.

In his own remarks on immigration Saturday, Moreno said foreigners who come to the United States should learn English.

“We don’t need to vote in five different languages. We learn the language,” said Moreno, a Colombian immigrant, wrongly claiming that English is the national language. “It means you assimilate. You become part of America; America doesn’t become part of you.”

Later in the rally, Trump warned it will be a “bloodbath for the country” if he is not elected. The comment came as he was promising to hike tariffs on foreign-made cars, and it was not clear exactly what Trump was referring to with his admonition.

“Now we’re going to put a 100 percent tariff on every single car that comes across [the] line, and you’re not going to be able to sell those guys — if I get elected,” he said. “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole. That’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

The Biden campaign characterized the comment as a promise of political violence.

“This is who Donald Trump is: a loser who gets beat by over 7 million votes and then instead of appealing to a wider mainstream audience doubles down on his threats of political violence,” spokesman James Singer said in a statement. “He wants another January 6, but the American people are going to give him another electoral defeat this November because they continue to reject his extremism, his affection for violence, and his thirst for revenge.”

Steven Cheung, a spokesman for Trump’s campaign, said Trump’s remark was not about violence, but rather was an extension of Trump’s comments about imported cars.

“If you actually watch and listen to the section, he was talking about the auto industry and tariffs,” he wrote in an email, adding that “Biden’s policies will create an economic bloodbath for the auto industry and autoworkers.”

Immigration is shaping up to be an explosive issue in the presidential campaign. Trump and President Biden staged dueling visits to Texas border towns last month, castigating each other for a recent surge in illegal immigration.

Trump said the influx of migrants was “a Joe Biden invasion.” Biden blamed Trump for the death of a $20 billion bipartisan bill to increase detention capacity and hire thousands of Border Patrol officers.

Trump’s comments Saturday represent an escalation of his long-harsh language on the topic. Since beginning his 2016 campaign by calling Mexican immigrants “rapists,” Trump has made inflammatory attacks on migrants a theme of all of his campaigns. He accused immigrants in October of “poisoning the blood of our country” — a remark some likened to the “contamination of the blood” concept that Adolf Hitler laid out in “Mein Kampf.” Trump has rejected that comparison and has continued to use similar language.

He has also pledged to launch an unprecedented deportation effort if elected, pointing as inspiration to a 1954 program called “Operation Wetback” that used military-style tactics to remove Mexican immigrants from the country.

“Among my very first actions upon taking office will be to stop the invasion of our country,” Trump said Saturday.

Election 2024

Get the latest news on the 2024 election from our reporters on the campaign trail and in Washington.

Who is running? President Biden and Donald Trump both secured their parties’ nominations for the presidency , formalizing a general-election rematch.

Key issues: Compare where the candidates stand on such issues as abortion, climate and the economy.

Key dates and events: From January to June, voters in all states and U.S. territories will pick their party’s nominee for president ahead of the summer conventions. Here are key dates and events on the 2024 election calendar .

• Trump legal issues cast long shadow on campaign trail March 25, 2024 Trump legal issues cast long shadow on campaign trail March 25, 2024
• Trump reels from competing court decisions as trials disrupt campaign March 25, 2024 Trump reels from competing court decisions as trials disrupt campaign March 25, 2024
• IVF ruling, abortion debate shape battle lines in Alabama special election March 25, 2024 IVF ruling, abortion debate shape battle lines in Alabama special election March 25, 2024

Tim Burke faces a federal indictment for finding and publicizing unaired footage of Kanye West’s antisemitic rant on Tucker Carlson’s show. That tirade, and West’s subsequent antisemitism, have been national news ever since .

Breaking major news about hate speech by a celebrity and former presidential candidate sounds a whole lot like journalism. That’s why we were surprised to see the Tampa Bay Times refer to Burke as a “former journalist” in its reporting.

Times editor Mark Katches ’ March 24 column attempted to explain the Times’ thinking. We appreciate the transparency, but the Times is dead wrong.

To Katches’ credit, he recognizes that the Times is in the minority. More than 50 rights organizations and broadcasters considered Burke a journalist when they sounded the alarm over his case in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland. The Washington Post , NBC News , Columbia Journalism Review , U.S. Press Freedom Tracker , and plenty of others consider him one as well. A federal judge called him a “ member of the media ” last year.

The Times sees it differently for two primary reasons. First, Burke is no longer employed by a news outlet and, in recent years, has worked as a consultant. A journalist “can’t straddle both worlds at once,” Katches writes. Second, Katches believes Burke’s political work, including campaigning for his wife in Tampa, preclude him from reporting without violating journalism’s “code of ethics.”

These may be reasons why Katches wouldn’t hire Burke at the Times. But they don’t make Burke any less of a journalist or diminish his constitutional rights.

The code of ethics to which Katches presumably refers is published by the Society of Professional Journalists , or SPJ. It’s not the law, and adherence to it is not a prerequisite to invoke the First Amendment. The SPJ itself considers Burke a journalist . It’s even helping fund his legal defense. The national SPJ and its Florida chapter both signed the letter to Garland.

SPJ President Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins told us that, “the Code of Ethics should not be used to determine who qualifies as a journalist,” although SPJ “strongly encourages” freelance journalists to abide by the code. She said Burke did so by acting independently to inform the public, and that there’s no suggestion he had any conflicts of interest.

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The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, a database of press freedom violations published by one of our organizations, Freedom of the Press Foundation, also adopts a “functional definition of who is a journalist,” which Burke easily satisfies.

Tracker managing editor Kirstin McCudden explained: “Not all journalists work full time. In fact, it’s not part of the assessment that the Tracker makes when applying its definition of a journalist. What’s more important is if the person was doing an act of journalism.”

Burke certainly was when he broke the news that got him indicted. If he ever took a hiatus from journalism, it’s self-evident from the case against him that he’d returned.

The Constitution also views journalism as an action, not a job title. There was no code of journalistic ethics, no concept of “ objective ” reporting and few if any professional journalists when the First Amendment was ratified.

Many of the Founding Fathers authored the Federalist Papers and other articles that shaped our nation. They weren’t career journalists and they wrote for the express purpose of advancing political objectives. But it was their sweat to contribute to the public debate that the First Amendment sought to protect.

This approach continues today. Congress enacted the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 to protect against seizures of journalists’ files following a raid of Stanford’s student newspaper. Lawmakers chose not to limit the law to traditional journalists, instead protecting anyone “reasonably believed to have a purpose to disseminate to the public a newspaper, book, broadcast or other similar form of public communication.”

It’s understandable why some traditional journalists, many of whom work late nights for low pay, might begrudge peers who seek greener pastures. Reporters who hold back opinions to comply with ethical codes and company policies can be forgiven for resenting those who don’t make similar sacrifices (although, to Blaize-Hopkins’ point, it’s hard to find a conflict between Burke’s political work in Tampa and a story about a pop star across the country).

But career journalists should distinguish themselves through the quality of their work, not by belittling others’ rights and freedoms. With all of the headwinds it’s facing these days, journalism doesn’t need gatekeeping; it needs breathing room to evolve.

Constant newsroom closures and layoffs mean plenty of talented career journalists are, unfortunately, going to need to find other ways to earn money, while hopefully still finding time to dabble in journalism. That means more freelancers and consultants like Burke.

Press freedom is under attack , especially in Florida , and ambiguous computer crime laws like those Burke is charged under are a dangerous weapon in prosecutors’ arsenals. Katches may think he’s helping preserve the integrity of his profession but, instead, his column handed a gift to those seeking to criminalize newsgathering while the media is most vulnerable .

Seth Stern is the director of advocacy for Freedom of the Press Foundation and a First Amendment lawyer. Bobby Block is the executive director of the Florida First Amendment Foundation.

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In L.A. speech, First Lady Jill Biden highlights need to fund women’s health research

T he First Lady Jill Biden discussed the Biden administration’s efforts to fundamentally shift how America approaches and funds research on women’s health at an event at the Getty Center on Monday, March 25.

Biden was joined in conversation with actress Halle Berry billed as “Writing New Stories About Women’s Health (Yes, That Includes Menopause!),” as part of a series of discussions during “A Day of Unreasonable Conversation.” This annual event seeks to connect  entertainment industry players to change-makers in a wide range of fields to inspire writers, artists and executives to use media to advance social change.

During her 15-minute conversation with Berry, the first lady discussed her personal health journey and why she spearheaded the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research, which seeks to direct funding to address gaps in the understanding and treatment of women’s health concerns.

“We need answers for menopause and for why do certain diseases like Alzheimer’s hit women more than men, why does diabetes affect women differently than men?” said Biden. “There are so many things that we don’t have the answers to, but that is changing today.”

Monday’s event wraps up the first lady’s public appearances during her four-day fundraising and speaking swing through Los Angeles. During the trip, Biden also delivered remarks at campaign receptions in Hancock Park and Rancho Mirage and headlined the Human Rights Campaign’s 2024 Los Angeles dinner .

The White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research was launched in November 2023 to spur research on conditions unique to women — such as menopause and endometriosis — conditions that disproportionately impact women and conditions that impact women differently than men.

Women are historically underrepresented in research studies and many dosages and treatments for conditions are based on men’s bodies. Gaps in knowledge are especially large for conditions impacting women of color and women with disabilities, Biden said.

Biden recounted her own frustrating experience navigating menopause and hormone therapy. At first the therapy was strongly recommended to manage her symptoms and then suddenly she was being told it caused breast cancer, she said. A visit to her gynecologist provided little clarity on the best course of action.

“She (the gynecologist) had no answers,” said Biden. “And that’s the problem.”

“Obviously we have to find answers,” she said. “So I went to Joe and he signed an executive order to make sure that we have more research and more funding and he put (a request) into the budget for $12 billion.”

The President voiced his request for Congress to direct $12 billion to women’s health research during his State of the Union Address earlier this month.

“Women are more than half of our population but research on women’s health has always been underfunded,” he said. “Pass my plan for $12 billion to transform women’s health research and benefit millions of lives across America.”

Related links

• First Lady Jill Biden speaks on LBGTQ+ rights at Human Rights Campaign dinner in LA
• First Lady returns to LA to raise money for Biden reelection campaign
• First Lady speaks at LA gala championing Black brands and designers
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During Monday’s conservation with the first lady, Berry shared how she felt blindsided by the symptoms from menopause and wished she had been educated about the supplements and nutrition that can help women navigate this challenging time. She also voiced her annoyance that society at large doesn’t take menopause seriously, reducing it, for example, to just some annoying hot flashes.

“When you have hot flashes what that does is it keeps you awake at night and when you don’t get proper sleep as you age, both men and women, what does that do? It causes all kinds of physiological problems in your body, which lead to early Alzheimer’s, dementia, diabetes, and heart disease,” she said.

Biden said that lack of guidance over health concerns is a frustration all older women can relate to.

“If you get together with your girlfriends or your sisters all we talk about is health,” she said. “What are these hot flashes? Why am I not sleeping? Why is my hair thinning? Why am I gaining weight, losing weight, whatever it is, and we need answers.”

If approved by Congress, the President’s proposed $12 billion investment would be used to create a Fund for Women’s Health Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). His executive order, signed on March 18, will jump-start this fund by provide the NIH with $200 million to expand research on women’s sexual and reproductive issues.

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Rick Insell's pregame speech before MTSU-LSU March Madness game: 'They're going to write books about you'

MTSU women's basketball coach Rick Insell was very matter-of-fact with his team before Sunday's March Madness second round game against LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

In his pregame locker room speech shown by ABC, Insell told the players that books will be written about what MTSU does in Sunday's game.

"Well, (LSU has) everything in their favor. They're playing in front of their crowd, they're playing in their gym," Insell said in the initial snippet shown by ABC. "They've got the pressure on them."

"You don't go out there and be nervous. I don't care how loud they get," Insell said. "You don't go out there and be nervous. How many shots in a row they hit in a row -- don't worry about it. Just like the other day, Do our thing."

"There's no secret formula. They're just like y'all," Insell continued in another snippet. "They got up this morning. Some of them didn't sleep last night. Some of them did, because they probably didn't think y'all were worthy of being here. Well, let me tell you something: We're worthy of being here. They haven't gone through what we've gone through."

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"... They're going to write books about you. Your granddaughters are going to be able to check it out in a library one day and read about you. You got me? Go finish this thing up. Let's go."

The speech must have worked for, at minimum, the first half for the Blue Raiders, who led 36-32 at halftime playing on the road against the defending national champion LSU. MTSU is seeking its first Sweet 16 berth in program history with a win over LSU on Sunday following a first-round upset win over 5-seed Louisville on Friday.